In the art of photography, there are cameras in which an exposed film is developed inside the camera, and there are cameras in which an exposed film is retained for subsequent development outside the camera. Each type of camera has its own advantages and disadvantages.
An advantage of the camera in which exposed film is developed inside the camera is that the operator can see the results of his picture taking almost immediately and does not have to wait a long period of time for development outside the camera. One disadvantage in using this type camera is that the operator of the camera has no choice as to when the film is developed or where the film is developed. The film must be developed immediately after the picture is taken and must be developed in the camera. The development of the film cannot be postponed to a later time at another location. There may be times, however, that the photographer is in a hurry to take a series of pictures and does not want to interrupt his picture taking by having to wait for an exposed frame to be developed in the camera. In addition, it may be inconvenient for the photographer to handle the developed prints or transparencies in the location where the pictures are being taken. The photographer may be on the move or in a location where stopping and handling the finished photographs is not practical.
An advantage of the camera in which the film is not developed is that it permits the rapid taking of a series of pictures without the photographer needing to worry about the time required to develop film in the camera and the handling of the developed photographs during a photographic session. A disadvantage of the non-developing camera is that the photographer cannot know the form and content of his photographs until he leaves the scene of the picture taking. This is undesirable because very often the scene that he is photographing would be difficult or impossible to duplicate at a later time if it turns out that the exposures that were made were not satisfactory.
When transparent slides are to be produced from exposed film, the conventional procedure is to have a roll of exposed film processed, and then have the developed transparencies cut off the roll and mounted in slide mountings to form transparent slides. This is a time consuming and inconvenient procedure, and it would be desirable to provide a camera in which exposures on a film could be mounted as slides within the camera. Furthermore, it would be desirable to provide a camera in which exposures were mounted in slides without the need for cutting any film strip.